New Year's Forever: Nici + Niall's Bellinter House Wedding

A party from start to finish, Nici and Niall's New Year's Eve wedding is the ultimate in festive fun. The newlyweds and all their guests were captured at the stunning Bellinter House by Chris Copeland, all smiles and laughs, ringing in the new year and the start of a beautiful new life together. Perfect inspiration for any of you planning a similar New Years Eve wedding party...

Meeting for the first time in Madrid, it was only a matter of time for these Belfast natives to finally end up together. Nici tells us, "I was living there teaching in a school and Niall joined the same school a year later. He became friends with my friends, joined the group, and the rest is history!"

Nici was taken completely by surprise on the night Niall proposed. She explains that the two had gone to a small cottage on the beach in Cloughy for a quiet weekend away, as they often did. She continues, "I was sitting by the fire in pyjamas, when Niall came in from “getting more logs” and told me to come see how big the moon was on the beach. He led me onto the shore, blindfolded and when I looked there was a canvas board with ‘Casate conmigo’ (marry me) written on it and covered in lights."

Going with their gut feeling, they chose Bellinter House as their venue. Nici told us, "Bellinter House was the first place Niall took me away to. We loved it, the rooms, the drawing rooms, the spa and the relaxed atmosphere. I had no idea Niall was going to propose but he had a plan in mind for months, and as soon as he suggested Bellinter House, we phoned and booked! We didn’t even view any other venues!"

Having moved back from Madrid to Belfast to be closer to their growing families, family is clearly very important to Nici and Niall. Nici reveals that every family member was very involved in their wedding. Family members helped with the planning, the decorations, the Hen and Stag parties (both the bride and groom each had two, one in Madrid and Belfast!), and each member was involved in the ceremony. Nici reveals the wedding simply would not have been what it was without Niall's sister Ciara, who was the creative force behind the eventful weekend.

Nici gushes, "Our family are so important to us and we love that they were so integral to the day. Every guest mentioned how personal and emotional the ceremony was."

The couple tells us that their wedding was basically a 3 day event, beginning the night before the wedding where about 30 people started off the eating, drinking, and celebrating to get the party vibes going. Nici recalls, "I thought our day would go slower as it was really a 3 day wedding party but it didn’t and just like everyone says, it went by in the blink of an eye. Everyone was up for a good day and night as it was NYE. Good music, gold and Guinness!"

A highlight of the night was the music and dancing. Nici remembers, "Ken Kirwen sang during our meal; they couldn’t serve the food as everyone was up dancing! The Mixtape were our evening band. They were amazing!"

Just married, they flew out the following evening to Thailand for a romantic, beachy winter honeymoon. Nici raves, "We spent a week in 36 degree luxury while Ireland was bleak and wintery!"

Huge congratulations the happy couple and thanks so much for sharing your special day with all of us. A big thank you also goes to Chris Copeland for sharing his work with us. To see more from Chris Copeland visit www.chriscopelandphotography.co.uk